


Good Enough

by MapsOnTheDunes



Category: Masameer
Genre: Arab Character, Fluff, Geniuses, Girl Power, Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Other, Sisters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:55:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27121454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MapsOnTheDunes/pseuds/MapsOnTheDunes
Summary: After being dismissed when she went to see her friends at the hospital, Dana is crushed. The fact that she's told to take time off from work doesn't make her feel any better either.There is one thing she's looking forward to--the STEM competition that she had signed up for. The thing was...she had to be a host for a competitor from another country.*Despite all the awards and perfect report cards she's recieved, Ivy feels she isn't good enough. Shunned by her mother, she feels lonelier than she ever had in her short life. Maybe the STEM competition would be different from ththe others she'd signed up for. Perhaps she'd make a friend.
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

For most of her life, Dana had been different. In kindergarten, when the other girls wanted to play with Barbies, she would try building robots out of shoeboxes. In second grade, she taught herself basic computer programming using YouTube tutorials and articles from the internet. By this time, other girls were beginning to notice that Dana's hobbies didn't exactly match theirs, and gave her a hard time for it. 

Dana didn't care. She loved what she did.

Her passion for robotics and programming carried on into adulthood. It got her a spot at one of the best universities in the country, and into a master's degree program abroad. Then, it got her a job.

A job she hadn't even managed to do correctly. 

Her boss had told her that she'd been working too much lately, and after the whole 'Fazee' situation, she should probably take some more weeks off. A mental health break, he said. But to Dana...it felt like a punch in the gut. It felt like he was pretty much saying, 'We need a break from you and your terrible work'. 

The whole superhero situation didn't work out the way she had hoped either. Not only were various buildings completely demolished, but when she'd tried to talk to her newfound friends after they'd ended up in hospital, they'd shunned her.

When she'd gotten home, she had headed straight to her room, ignoring her mother's questions about whether or not she was okay. She'd cried herself to sleep that night, and hadn't even wanted breakfast in the morning. 

There were three knocks at her door. Three soft, female knocks that she knew all too well. "Dana?" 

"Come in, Mom." Dana called, her voice clouded with exhaustion, and scratchy from lack of use.

Her mom entered, holding an envelope.

"This…came in the mail today." She handed it to Dana, who looked at it blankly at first before her eyes widened.

The envelope was a perfect, clean shade of white. On it was Dana's address, typed carefully in Times New Roman, and a return address from the other side. She immediately recognized the seal on the front.

She had signed up for this a few months ago, even going through various exams to be eligible. The STEM Convention. Where talented individuals could have their ideas judged and receive grants to go through with them.

This could be just what she needed. 

"Alright. Thanks, Mom." She felt happy for the first time in a few days. Things could very well turn around within the next few weeks.


	2. Chapter 2

Ivy was never one to slack off. Never. She was the best student in her class, and the brightest at school. All the teachers loved her, and she worked hard to impress them. In fact, she was what one would call a ‘teacher’s pet’.

She passed every test with flying colors, and made straight A-pluses every semester. Three shoeboxes under her bed housed various medals, awards, and tiaras that she had won over the years. The tiaras, from back when she did pageants, were gathering dust in a water-damaged cardboard box that she had tightly taped shut. She couldn’t bring herself to throw them out, although a part of her really wanted to. The other two boxes   
housed more recent awards--medals from spelling bees, perfect attendance awards, three trophies from regional science fairs, and countless ribbons from math contests. 

But it wasn’t good enough. None of it was. 

Every time she was given an award, every time she would see her name--first, middle, and last--stamped onto a trophy or printed on a certificate, she felt guilty. She didn’t feel like she deserved them. It was as though it was another Ivy who had won them. A fake Ivy. The real Ivy was wimpy, pathetic, and an embarrassment. All the report cards, all the awards...those were camouflage. So that nobody would ever see the real Ivy. The Ivy who had, so deeply and awfully, disappointed her parents past the point of forgiveness. 

But here was something else. Something new. 

"It came, it finally came!" She whispered to herself as she broke the seal on the envelope and read the contents. Her heart leapt when she saw she'd been accepted into the contest. 

Her heart stopped for a moment when she began reading the middle of the letter. She would have to go aboard for half of the contest. To Saudi Arabia, in fact. Her ticket would be covered, and she would be staying with another of the competitors. She didn't know who yet, but she knew she could manage. Somehow.

While it was definitely far from home, it didn't matter. Anything that would have made her father proud, and potentially make her mother happy. If she was lucky.


	3. Chapter 3

"So, do you have any idea who will be staying with us?" Dana's mom pressed for the thousandth time.

Dana forced a laugh. "Asked and answered, Mom." She had given her mother the same answer every time. No, she had no idea what their houseguest would be like, only that her name was Ivy. Yes, it would be another girl. She knew that for a fact. And yes, she was sure that Ivy was a girl's name. Honestly, her mother's questions were almost like a pattern. 

"Take this exit. It's shorter." Dana's mother instructed. 

"But there was an accident there. Didn't you hear on the radio?" Dana glanced over at her mother, then back at the road.

"Alright, so continue the way you were going."

Dana was doing that anyways, carefully changing lanes and taking the next exit. Within several minutes they were at the airport, and Dana got out, looking at her phone. "So, I guess we hold up the sign with her name." She looked carefully at the piece of A4 paper that had the name IVY SAARINEN written on it in blue permanent marker.

They headed to the arrivals section, and Dana held up the sign. She tried to guess which one of the people coming out was Ivy. The woman in thick glasses? The girl Dana's age with the sparkly eyeshadow and a purple suitcase? Her eyes scanned the crowd, searching. But she only kept her head at the level of an adult. She couldn't actually see Ivy.

Ivy honestly had just slept the entire ride. It was hard not to fall asleep. Something about being in a plane made her tired. When she woke up, they had landed, and when she got off the plane the first thing she did was find a public bathroom and brush her hair and teeth. She splashed water on her face, trying to make herself look at least somewhat presentable. She couldn't face her host family--including her fellow competitor--looking like a bedraggled mess. 

She went out, and began looking around. There were lots of people holding up signs in both English and Arabic. She tried to look for one with her name on it. Her eyes widened as she saw a woman in her mid-20s holding up the sign and looking around. 

Taking a deep breath, she went over. "Um...hello. I'm Ivy. Ivy Saarinen." Her voice came out quieter than she wanted. Nevertheless, it seemed to catch the woman's attention as she looked around her, before finally looking down and seeing Ivy, her eyes widened. 

"Um...hello. Are you lost?" Dana spoke fairly accented English as she crouched down to Ivy's height.

"No. I'm supposed to be here. The name on your sign is my name." She sounded slightly annoyed, but still made the effort to sound polite. 

"But...you're a little girl!" Dana was stunned. 

"So…?" Ivy was indignant. She didn't feel like being singled out for her age. This was something that happened all too often.

Dana was about to reply, but then tried to remember how she would have liked to be talked to when she was little. 

"Well...that is fine. Anyways." She rubbed the back of her neck. "My name is Dana. This is my mother. And you're Ivy, is that right."

"Yes, ma'am." Ivy gave a solemn nod as Dana's mother cooed over Ivy and pinched her cheeks. Ivy looked deeply uncomfortable, but wasn't protesting. 

"Anyways...let's get to the car. How old are you? Should we see about getting you a car seat?" Dana asked, genuinely curious. She definitely didn't want anything bad happening to this girl.

Ivy flushed with indignance, but soon realized it was a genuine question. "No, ma'am."

"Please just call me Dana. No formalities are needed." Dana insisted, stroking the child's flaxen hair. Ivy drew away a little. "Let's get you settled. After you're unpacked and rested, we should definitely show you around Riyadh. Wouldn't you like that?" 

Ivy was honestly surprised at her hostess's welcoming attitude. "Um...I...really, maybe…" 

"Alright. Now let's go. I imagine you're tired after such a long journey." Dana grabbed Ivy's suitcase as her mother ushered Iby towards the parking lot. 

This was going to be fun. Or, at the very least...new.


End file.
